Jaycee kidnap accused case halted

The trial against Phillip Garrido, accused of kidnapping Jaycee Dugard, has been suspended (AP)

A judge has temporarily suspended criminal proceedings against the man accused of kidnapping Jaycee Dugard when she was a child and holding her prisoner for 18 years, citing concerns about the defendant's mental state.

El Dorado County Superior Court Judge Douglas Phimister made the decision after a short pre-trial hearing for Phillip Garrido.

Judge Phimister said he had concerns about Garrido's mental competency to participate in his defence on 29 counts of kidnapping, rape and false imprisonment in the 1991 disappearance of Ms Dugard.

A preliminary hearing where prosecutors would have laid out their evidence against Garrido had been scheduled to start on October 7.

The judge did not halt proceedings against Garrido's wife, Nancy, who faces similar counts. The couple are accused of holding the girl captive in a backyard jumble of tents and sheds for nearly two decades until they were arrested in August 2009. Authorities said Ms Dugard, who is now 30, bore two daughters to Garrido while being held.

The judge said he based his decision on talks with Garrido's attorney and observing the defendant in court over the past few months. A report from a psychiatrist appointed by Judge Phimister to assist the defence is pending.

Judge Phimister said he was concerned about Garrido's unresponsive behaviour during earlier hearings. He said he had noticed Garrido looking away and appearing not to be listening when his lawyer was talking to him, and frantically scribbling notes when nothing important was happening. "The court is troubled by these observations," he said.

The judge's action came in response to a private meeting with Garrido's lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Susan Gellman, who has previously stated she thinks her client is mentally ill. She told Judge Phimister that she agreed with his assessment based on her more than 20 visits with Garrido in jail.

Outside court, Ms Gellman described the suspension as a delay that would likely last only a few months and not a strategy to keep her client from being prosecuted.

Nancy Garrido is due back in court on October 1 for a final pre-trial conference before her October 7 preliminary hearing.